List of first satellites by country

First artificial satellites launched by country or territory From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

As of 1 May 2026, over eighty countries have operated artificial satellites.

  Denotes international organisations
  Denotes countries formerly part of another country which already had a spacecraft in orbit
  Denotes countries with disputed sovereignty or recognition and autonomous dependent territories
More information Country, Satellite ...
Country Satellite Operator Manufacturer Carrier rocket[1] Launch site[1] Date (UTC)[1] Remarks
 Soviet UnionSputnik 1[2]OKB-1Soviet Union OKB-1Soviet Union Sputnik 8K71PSSoviet Union Baikonur4 October 1957First satellite launched
 United StatesExplorer 1[3]ABMAUnited States JPLUnited States Juno I RS-29United States Cape Canaveral1 February 1958
 United KingdomAriel 1[4]RAEUnited States NASA / United Kingdom SERCUnited States Thor DM-19 DeltaUnited States Cape Canaveral26 April 1962
 CanadaAlouette 1[5]DRDCCanada DRDCUnited States Thor DM-21 Agena-BUnited States Vandenberg29 September 1962
 ItalySan Marco 1[6]CNRItaly CRA[6]United States Scout X-4United States Wallops15 December 1964
 FranceAstérix[7]CNESFrance CNESFrance Diamant AAlgeria Hammaguir26 November 1965
 AustraliaWRESAT[8]WREAustralia WREUnited States SpartaAustralia Woomera29 November 1967
10 European countries
  • Belgium
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Netherlands
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • United Kingdom
 ESRO 2B[9] ESRO United Kingdom Hawker Siddeley[9] United States Scout B United States Vandenberg 17 May 1968[10]
 West GermanyAzur[11]DLRGermany DLR / United States NASAUnited States Scout BUnited States Vandenberg8 November 1969
 JapanOhsumi[12]ISASJapan ISASJapan Lambda-4SJapan Kagoshima11 February 1970
 ChinaDongfanghong I[13]CASTChina CASTChina Chang Zheng 1China Jiuquan24 April 1970
 NetherlandsANS[14]SRON / NASANetherlands PhilipsUnited States Scout D-1United States Vandenberg30 August 1974
 SpainIntasat[14]INTASpain Standard ElectricaUnited States Delta 2310United States Vandenberg15 November 1974
 IndiaAryabhata[14]ISROIndia ISROSoviet Union Kosmos-3MSoviet Union Kapustin Yar19 April 1975
 IndonesiaPalapa A1[14]PerumtelUnited States HughesUnited States Delta 2914United States Cape Canaveral8 July 1976
 CzechoslovakiaMagion 1[14]IAPCzechoslovakia IGSoviet Union Kosmos-3MSoviet Union Plesetsk24 October 1978
 BulgariaBulgaria 1300[14]BSABulgaria Bulgarian Academy of SciencesSoviet Union Vostok-2MSoviet Union Plesetsk7 August 1981
 Saudi ArabiaArabsat-1AArabsatFrance AérospatialeAriane 3France Kourou8 February 1985
 BrazilBrasilsat A1[14]EmbratelUnited States Hughes
 MexicoMorelos 1[14]SCTUnited States HughesUnited States Space Shuttle DiscoveryUnited States Kennedy17 June 1985Deployed using PAM-D during STS-51-G
 SwedenVikingSSCUnited States Boeing/
Sweden Saab		Ariane 1France Kourou22 February 1986
 IsraelOfek-1Israel IAIIsrael ShavitIsrael Palmachim19 September 1988
 LuxembourgAstra 1ASES AstraUnited States GE AstrospaceAriane 44LPFrance Kourou11 December 1988
 ArgentinaLusatAMSAT ArgentinaAriane 40France Kourou22 January 1990
Hong KongAsiaSat 1AsiaSatUnited States HughesChina Chang Zheng 3China Xichang7 April 1990Hong Kong, a British Overseas Territory, became part of the People's Republic of China in July 1997
 PakistanBadr-1SUPARCOPakistan SUPARCOChina Chang Zheng 2EChina Xichang16 July 1990
 RussiaKosmos 2175RussiaRussia Soyuz-URussia Plesetsk21 January 1992Successor state to the Soviet Union
 South KoreaKitsat-1KAISTUnited Kingdom SSTLAriane 42PFrance Kourou10 August 1992
 PortugalPoSAT-1PoSATUnited Kingdom SSTLAriane 40France Kourou26 September 1993
 ThailandThaicom-1Shin SatelliteUnited States HughesAriane 44LFrance Kourou18 December 1993
 TurkeyTurksat 1BTürksatFrance AérospatialeAriane 44LPFrance Kourou10 August 1994
 Czech RepublicMagion 4IAPCzech Republic IAPRussia Molniya-MRussia Plesetsk2 August 1995Formerly part of Czechoslovakia
 UkraineSich-1Ukraine Tsyklon-3Russia Plesetsk31 August 1995Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 ChileFASat-AlfaUnited Kingdom SSTLFailed to separate
 MalaysiaMEASAT-1MEASATUnited States HughesAriane 44LFrance Kourou13 January 1996
 NorwayThor 2TelenorUnited States HughesUnited States Delta II 7925United States Cape Canaveral20 May 1997
 PhilippinesMabuhay (Agila 1)
(former Palapa B2P)		MabuhayUnited States Delta-3920United States Cape Canaveral20 March 1987Originally operated and launched for Indonesian company PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara. Acquired while on orbit by Mabuhay in 1996 making it the first Philippine owned satellite.
Mabuhay 1 (Agila 2)United States SS/LoralChina Chang Zheng 3BChina Xichang19 August 1997First Philippine satellite to be launched from space
 EgyptNilesat 101NilesatAstriumAriane 44PFrance Kourou28 April 1998
 Singapore
 Taiwan		ST-1SingTel
Chunghwa		AstriumAriane 44PFrance Kourou25 August 1998
 TaiwanFormosat-1NSPOUnited States TRWUnited States Athena IUnited States Cape Canaveral27 January 1999
 South AfricaSUNSATStellenboschSouth Africa StellenboschUnited States Delta II 7920United States Vandenberg23 February 1999Launched on same rocket as first Danish satellite
 DenmarkØrstedDMI[15]Denmark CRI[15]Launched on same rocket as first South African satellite
Georgia (country) Georgia[16] Reflektor Energia-GPI Space Georgia (country) Russia Energia-GPI Space Russia Soyuz-U Kazakhstan Baikonur Site 1/5 17 July 1999 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 United Arab EmiratesThuraya 1ThurayaUnited States BoeingUkraine Zenit-3SLUnited Nations Odyssey21 October 2000
 BelgiumPROBA-1ESABelgium Verhaert SpaceIndia Polar Satellite Launch VehicleIndia Satish Dhawan22 October 2001
 MoroccoMaroc-TubsatGermany TU BerlinUkraine Zenit-2Kazakhstan Baikonur10 December 2001
 TongaEsiafi 1
(formerly Comstar D4)		TONGASATUnited States SS/LoralUnited States Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1ARUnited States Cape Canaveral21 February 1981A private American satellite that transferred ownership to Tonga in April 2002
 AlgeriaAlSAT-1United Kingdom SSTLRussia Kosmos-3MRussia Plesetsk28 November 2002
 GreeceHellas-Sat 2Hellas-SatAstriumUnited States Atlas V 401United States Cape Canaveral13 May 2003
 NigeriaNigeriaSat-1United Kingdom SSTLRussia Kosmos-3MRussia Plesetsk27 September 2003
 IranSina-1Russia NPO PolyotRussia Kosmos-3MRussia Plesetsk27 October 2005
 KazakhstanKazSat-1Russia KhrunichevRussia Proton-M/DM3Kazakhstan Baikonur17 June 2006Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 ColombiaLibertad-1United StatesColombiaUkraine DneprKazakhstan Baikonur17 April 2007
 MauritiusRascom-QAF 1RascomFrance AlcatelAriane 5GSFrance Kourou21 December 2007
 VietnamVinasat-1Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications GroupUnited States Lockheed MartinAriane 5ECAFrance Kourou18 April 2008
 VenezuelaVenesat-1China CASTChina Chang Zheng 3B/EChina Xichang29 October 2008
Afghanistan Afghanistan Eutelsat 48D / Afghansat 1 Afghanistan Ministry of Communications and Information EADS Astrium France Ariane 5ECA France Kourou 20 December 2008 Satellite leased to the Afghanistan Ministry of Communications and Information in January 2014
 SwitzerlandSwissCube-1SwitzerlandIndia PSLV-CAIndia Satish Dhawan23 September 2009
 SingaporeX-SatSouth Korea SATRECIndia PSLV-CIndia Satish Dhawan20 April 2011
 Isle of ManViaSat-1ViaSat-IOM, ManSat, Telesat-IOMUnited States SS/LoralRussia Proton-M/Briz-MKazakhstan Baikonur19 October 2011Isle of Man is a Crown Dependency of the British sovereign
 HungaryMaSat-1[17]Hungary BMEVegaFrance Kourou13 February 2012
 PolandPW-Sat[17]Warsaw University of Technology, Space Research CentreDeorbit on 28 October 2014
 RomaniaGoliat[17]United StatesRomania
 BelarusBelKA-2[18][19]RussiaRussia Soyuz-FG/FregatKazakhstan Baikonur22 July 2012
 North KoreaKwangmyŏngsŏng-3 Unit 2[20]KCSTNorth KoreaNorth Korea Unha-3North Korea Sohae12 December 2012Failed to operate in orbit
 AzerbaijanAzerspace-1/Africasat-1a[21] Space Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos)United States Orbital SciencesAriane 5ECAFrance Kourou7 February 2013 Independent since 1991
 AustriaTUGSAT-1/UniBRITE[22]Canada UTAISIndia PSLV-CAIndia Satish Dhawan25 February 2013Austria's first two satellites were launched together
 BermudaBermudasat 1
(former EchoStar VI)		BermudasatUnited States SS/LoralUnited States Atlas IIASUnited States Cape Canaveral14 July 2000Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory; Bermudasat 1 (former private American EchoStar VI) satellite was transferred in April 2013 to Bermuda being at orbit
 EcuadorNEE-01 Pegaso[23]EXAEcuador EXAChina Chang Zheng 2DChina Jiuquan26 April 2013
 EstoniaESTCube-1EstoniaVegaFrance Kourou7 May 2013Estonia was formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 JerseyO3b-1/O3b-2/O3b-3/O3b-4O3b NetworksFrance Thales Alenia SpaceRussia Soyuz-STB/Fregat-MTFrance Kourou25 June 2013Jersey's first four satellites were launched together. Jersey is a Crown Dependency of the British sovereign
 France
 Qatar		Eutelsat 25B / Es'hail 1Eutelsat
Es'hailSat		United States SS/LoralAriane 5ECAFrance Kourou29 August 2013Qatar's first satellite flew as a joint project with the French corporation Eutelsat
 QatarEs'hail 1Es'hailSatUnited States SS/LoralAriane 5ECAFrance Kourou29 August 2013Full ownership of the joint France-Qatar satellite Eutelsat 25B / Es'hail 1 was sold to Es'hailsat in 2018[24]
 PeruPUCP-Sat 1PeruUkraine DneprRussia Dombarovsky21 November 2013
Pocket-PUCP
 BoliviaTúpac Katari 1China CASTChina Chang Zheng 3B/EChina Xichang20 December 2013
 LithuaniaLitSat-1/Lituanica SAT-1LithuaniaUnited States Antares 120United States MARS LP-0A9 January 2014The first two Lithuanian satellites were launched together; both carried to the International Space Station and deployed later in the year. Lithuania was formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 IraqTigrisatMOST / La SapienzaItaly La SapienzaRussia DneprRussia Dombarovsky19 June 2014
 UruguayANTELSATANTELUruguay UdelaR
 TurkmenistanTurkmenAlem52E/MonacoSATTNSAFrance AlcatelUnited States Falcon 9United States Cape Canaveral27 April 2015Formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 LaosLaosat-1Laos National Authority for Science and TechnologyChina CASTChina Chang Zheng 3B/EChina Xichang20 November 2015
 FinlandAalto-2Aalto UniversityFinland Aalto UniversityUnited States Atlas V 401United States Cape Canaveral18 April 2017
 BangladeshBRAC ONNESHABRACUJapan Kyushu Institute of TechnologyUnited States Falcon 9 Full ThrustUnited States Kennedy3 June 2017Launched on same rocket as first Ghanaian and Mongolian satellites
 GhanaGhanaSat-1All Nations UniversityLaunched on same rocket as first Bangladeshi and Mongolian satellites
 MongoliaMazaalai (satellite)National University of MongoliaLaunched on same rocket as first Ghanaian and Bangladeshi satellites
 LatviaVenta 1Ventspils University CollegeLatvia Ventspils University CollegeIndia PSLV-CAIndia Satish Dhawan23 June 2017Formerly part of the Soviet Union, Launched on same rocket as first Slovakian satellite
 SlovakiaskCUBESOSASlovakia SOSAFormerly part of Czechoslovakia, Launched on same rocket as first Latvian satellite
 AngolaAngoSat 1AngoSatRussia RSC EnergiaUkraine Zenit-3F / Fregat-SBKazakhstan Baikonur26 December 2017Launch was successful but contact was lost quickly afterwards.[25] On 28 December 2017, communication was restored and telemetry was received.[26]
 New ZealandHumanity StarRocket LabUnited States Rocket LabNew Zealand ElectronNew Zealand Rocket Lab Launch Complex 121 January 2018First satellite launched by New Zealand launcher.
 Costa RicaProyecto IrazúCosta Rica Institute of TechnologyCosta Rica Costa Rica Institute of TechnologyUnited States Falcon 9United States Cape Canaveral2 April 2018First satellite of Central America. Manufactured in Costa Rica.[27]
 Kenya1KUNS-PFUniversity of NairobiUniversity of Nairobi KenyaLaunched on same rocket as first Costa Rican satellite.
 BhutanBhutan 1Bhutanese students under Kyutech-led second Joint Global Multination Birds Project (Birds-2)Japan Kyushu Institute of TechnologyUnited States Falcon 9 Full ThrustUnited States Cape Canaveral29 June 2018
 JordanJY1-SATJordanian students under the Crown Prince FoundationUnited States Falcon 9 Full ThrustUnited States Vandenberg3 December 2018
 NepalNepaliSat-1NAST for Nepal Academy of Science and TechnologyJapan Kyushu Institute of TechnologyUnited States Antares 230United States MARS LP0A17 April 2019
Sri LankaRaavana 1Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern TechnologiesJapan Kyushu Institute of Technology
 RwandaRWASAT-1Rwanda Utilities Regulatory AuthorityRwandan engineers with support from the Japan University of TokyoJapan H-IIBJapan Tanegashima Space Center Yoshinobu Launch Complex24 September 2019Decay from orbit 27 April 2022
 SudanSudan Remote Sensing Satellite 1 (SRSS-1)SudanISRAChina Long March 4BChina Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre LC-93 November 2019
 EthiopiaEthiopian Remote Sensing Satellite 1 (ETRSS-1)Ethiopia Ethiopia Ethiopian Space Science and Technology InstituteChina Long March 4BChina Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre20 December 2019
 GuatemalaQuetzal-1Universidad del Valle de Guatemala Guatemala Students from the Universidad del Valle de GuatemalaUnited States Falcon 9United States Cape Canaveral SLC-407 March 2020
Slovenia Slovenia TRISAT University of Maribor University of Maribor Vega France Kourou 3 September 2020 Launched on same rocket as first Monégasque satellite.
NEMO-HD Space-SI UTIAS / Space-SI
Monaco Monaco OSM-1 Cicero Orbital Solutions Monaco Monaco Orbital Solutions Monaco Launched on same rocket as first two Slovenian satellites.
Paraguay Paraguay GuaraniSat-1 Paraguayan Space Agency and Kyutech-led fourth Joint Global Multination Birds Project Japan Kyushu Institute of Technology United States Antares 230 United States MARS LP0A 20 February 2021 Launched on same rocket as first Myanma satellite.
Myanmar Myanmar Lawkanat-1[28] Myanmar Aerospace Engineering University Japan Hokkaido University / Myanmar Myanmar Aerospace Engineering University Launched on same rocket as first Paraguayan satellite.
Tunisia Challenge-1 Telnet Tunisie Telnet Tunisie Russia Soyuz-2.1a / Fregat Kazakhstan Baikonur Site 31/6 22 March 2021
Kuwait Kuwait QMR-KWT Orbital Space Kuwait Orbital Space Kuwait United States Falcon 9 United States CCSFS SLC-40 30 June 2021
Bahrain Bahrain
 United Arab Emirates		Light-1New York University Abu DhabiEngineers from Bahrain's space agency, NSSA, in collaboration with United Arab Emirates Khalifa University United States Falcon 9 United States CCSFS 21 December 2021 Bahrain's first satellite flew as a joint project with the UAE Space Agency
Armenia Armenia
Spain Spain		 ARMSAT_1 Satlantis / Geocosmos Satlantis United States Falcon 9 United States Cape Canaveral SLC-40 25 May 2022 Joint satellite between Satlantis and Geocosmos
Moldova Moldova TUMnanoSAT Technical University of Moldova Technical University of Moldova United States Falcon 9 United States Kennedy LC-39A 15 July 2022 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
Uganda PearlAfricaSat-1 Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation Kyushu Institute of Technology United States Antares United States MARS LP-0A 7 November 2022 Launched on the same rocket as the first Zimbabwean satellite
Zimbabwe ZIMSAT-1 Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency Kyushu Institute of Technology Launched on the same rocket as the first Ugandan satellite
Albania Albania-1 State Authority for Geospatial Information Argentina Satellogic United States Falcon 9 United States Cape Canaveral SLC-40 3 January 2023 First Albanian satellites, launched as a pair
Albania-2
Macau Macao Science-1A Macau University of Science and Technology Macau Macau University of Science and Technology China Long March 2C China Jiuquan LA-4 21 May 2023 First Macanese satellites, launched as a pair
Macao Science-1B
Vatican City Vatican City
Italy Italy		 SpeiSat Dicastery for Communication/ASI Italy ASI United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 12 June 2023 Joint satellite between the Italian Space Agency and the Vatican Dicastery for Communication
Oman AMAN-1 ETCO Poland SatRev United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 11 November 2023 Launched on the same rocket as the first Djiboutian satellite
Djibouti Djibouti-1A University of Djibouti France University of Montpellier Launched on the same rocket as the first Omani satellite
Armenia Hayasat-1 Bazoomq Space Research Laboratory Armenia Bazoomq Space Research Laboratory, Center of Scientific Innovation and Education United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 1 December 2023 Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Launched on the same rocket as the first Irish satellite
Ireland EIRSAT-1 University College Dublin Republic of Ireland University College Dublin Launched on the same rocket as the first Armenian satellite
Senegal GAINDESAT-1A [fr] SenSat France University of Montpellier United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 16 August 2024
Croatia CroCube Društvo EVO Croatia EVO/Slovakia Spacemanic[29] United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 21 December 2024
Botswana BOTSAT-1 Botswana International University of Science and Technology EnduroSat United States Falcon 9 United States Vandenberg SLC-4E 15 March 2025
Montenegro Montenegro Luča Montenegro Space Research AIVT by Sputnix Russia Soyuz-2.1b / Fregat-M Russia Vostochny Site 1S 28 December 2025
Close

Suborbital only

In addition, some countries have only attained a suborbital spaceflight, and have yet to launch a satellite into orbit.

More information Country, Payload ...
Country Payload Carrier rocket Launch site Date (UTC)
Lebanon[30] ARZ-3 Lebanon Cedar-3 Lebanon Dbayeh 21 November 1962
Yemen[31] Warhead Yemen Burkan-2 Yemen Sa'dah 4 November 2017
Sealand[32] Postcard United States New Shepard United States Corn Ranch, Launch Site One 13 October 2020 13:36
British Antarctic Territory British Antarctic Territory[33] Postcard United States New Shepard United States Corn Ranch, Launch Site One 14 January 2021 16:57
Close

See also

References

Related Articles

Wikiwand AI